Speak of the devil, and the devil appears—Erza walked into the Guild, dragging in Natsu and Gray before the goat milk was even finished.
Without saying a word after entering, she tossed the two bruised and battered individuals onto the floor.
Lucy and Hapi followed, one snickering and the other looking utterly done with everything.
"Hapi, over here!" Mira waved, "There's some tasty drinks here, Erza and Lucy, too."
She didn't know what happened, but it felt like something amusing must've occurred.
—Although Natsu and Gray had injuries, the familiarity of those scars suggested they weren't from battles with enemies.
Moreover, Erza's eyes seemed a bit bruised as well?
Curiosity was bubbling up inside her.
"Aye!" Hapi flew to the counter, clutching a cup of warm goat milk, feeling resurrected after a sip.
Lucy and Erza also sat down at one side. Seeing Mira in high spirits, Rhode shared a cup with them, too.
—By letting Warm have two less cups.
"So fragrant," Lucy sighed.
Erza sniffed it, her eyes lighting up, "With this aroma, it would be perfect as cream for a cake."
"Goat milk cream can't be used for cake, right?" Lucy was skeptical, "I think it should be used to make goat milk custard or oatmeal porridge."
"Is that so?" Erza thought for a moment, "Maybe we could make mixed cream with just a little goat milk."
"I'll bring some more next time." Rhode noted Lucy's suggestion, then asked, "What happened to Natsu and Gray? Did the mission not go well?"
Mira felt a bit happier; her husband was so thoughtful.
Hapi pulled out a crumpled task sheet from the small green bundle behind him, still smelling of fish, "The task was completed three days ago, but since then, they've been arguing and fighting constantly."
Turns out, the most severe injuries were caused by themselves.
Rhode marveled, "How did they manage to fight for three consecutive days?"
Hapi weakly replied, "Not continuously—they stop to eat when hungry and sleep when tired, then resume fighting.
"We can't stop them at all, and they even wrestle in their sleep, waking us up. I haven't slept well in three days, boohoo..."
Poor Hapi, who did nothing wrong, was worn out by these two.
Lucy spread her hands, helplessly saying, "Erza and I were worried about them, so we checked in, and they were still fighting. And..."
At this point, Lucy got a mysterious look, sneaking a peek at Erza's expression.
As expected, Erza's face fell slightly, but she didn't stop Lucy.
"The two of them even attacked Erza when she tried to mediate the fight."
Lucy had been a bit scared at the time, but now the thought made her chuckle.
"They were already injured, and then got a good beating from Erza."
Mira chuckled, "Erza getting hit by them is unexpected."
Erza scowled, "I got careless. Besides, haven't you often been knocked down before?"
Mira nodded cheerfully, "Indeed, back then."
For some reason, Erza felt like she lost.
The Guild was abuzz with laughter rather than concern, So much for experiencing Wendy's healing and Jubia's concern for Gray, marking the deep camaraderie among friends.
The bond was worthy of admiration.
Rhode considered giving Natsu and Gray a little prize—for making his wife happy, they were good people.
Rhode suddenly had a more exciting idea, "Oh, right, while everyone's here, we have something to do."
"Everyone?" Lucy glanced back, "There's quite a few, but many are still missing, right?"
"No problem, it's enough that both Teams A and B are here."
"Teams A and B?"
Rhode's smile suddenly seemed a bit sinister to Lucy.
"Yes, don't you remember? We agreed that the winning team could boss the other team around for a whole day."
Lucy opened her mouth, as if realizing this had indeed been a thing.
Erza's movements also froze; she'd been so busy lately she'd nearly forgotten about it.
Kana, sitting a bit farther, was too drunk to have heard.
Natsu's keen ears caught it, and he suddenly felt healed, leaping up to nonchalantly sneak out.
Gray, feeling the intense gaze from Jubia, also jumped up in an instant.
"Oh right, there's that matter!" Mira exclaimed, then became a bit puzzled, "But our Team B used a substitute to fill six people, while Team A only has five. How are we going to split them?"
"Well... actually, I have an appointment with Pururu for a walk today..." Lucy stood up, trying to leave.
"Actually, my armor is arriving today..." Even Erza seemed inclined to slip away.
Natsu and Gray took it a step further, draping arms over each other's shoulders, aiming to 'casually' walk out.
"Natsu, Gray, hold on a moment."
The President's voice startled the two attempted escapees, making them freeze.
They rigidly turned around, "Pres... President?"
Lucy's spirit was crushed, alas, the President was here to witness the wager, there was no escape now.
Unexpectedly, Makarov took out a request form, "There's another direct task for you."
"I definitely don't want to go with this guy..." The two spoke in unison, but after a brief pause, they quickly changed their tune, "Leave it to us!"
"Even if you don't want to go..." Makarov was taken aback, but seeing their willingness was good enough.
He solemnly instructed, "This time, you need to complete it earnestly, and be respectful when you meet the client!"
Such seriousness intrigued Lucy, "President, who's the client that requires such formality?"
Makarov answered, "The client this time is Vorod Sinker, the fourth of the Ten Wizard Saints."
"An order from one of the Ten Wizard Saints?!" Everyone was taken aback.
Seeing the Ten Wizard Saints was a routine sight, but receiving tasks from them?
Makarov shook his head, not demanding respect because of the rank, but rather hoping they present the Guild's new generation mages positively to the esteemed senior.
Though undoubtedly, the elder likely knew what the Guild was like...
Still, efforts should be made.
Rhode wondered, "Why ask for us explicitly when that old man could just say what he needed directly?"
Makarov said, "The specifics aren't mentioned; you'll know once there."
Erza slammed the table, seriously declaring, "President, letting Natsu and Gray alone will end in disaster. I'll go keep an eye on them!"
"Erza?" Lucy was momentarily surprised, then quickly responded, raising her hand high, "Oh! Count me in, too!"